Are some people born to achieve anything they want while others struggle? Call them lucky, blessed, or possessors of the Midas touch. What is the real reason for their success? Is it family background, wealth, greater opportunities, high morals, an easy childhood?

New York Times best-selling author John C. Maxwell has the answer: The difference between average people and achieving people is their perception of and response to failure.

Most people are never prepared to deal with failure. Maxwell says that if you are like him, coming out of school, you feared it, misunderstood it, and ran away from it. But Maxwell has learned to make failure his friend, and he can teach you to do the same.

"I want to help you learn how to confidently look the prospect of failure in the eye and move forward anyway," says Maxwell. "Because in life, the question is not if you will have problems, but how you are going to deal with them. Stop failing backward and start failing forward!"

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Listener Opinions

Maquisedouglas | 2/17/2014

" Need I say anymore the title is self explanatory.Go get it "

Tanesha | 2/17/2014

" Another of my all-time favorite motivational books. This one is a muct-read IMO. "

Sumo Sumoski | 2/12/2014

" Basis of Life is Failing, We Must only choose to Fall Forward "

Gary | 2/5/2014

" There is such a negative stigma to failing that it takes a complete paradigm shift to be able to see failure as an event not a person or an ending. I liked this book and recommend it to everyone. "

Anne | 2/1/2014

" Loved the idea that failure is not bad, but rather a stepping stone to future success if one learns from it. I have lived with the fear of failure for so long that it was nice to read something which states everyone is fundamentally capable of enormous things, we just need to learn from what we perceive as failure instead of hiding from it. "

" A way to re-frame failure and use it to your advantage. This is an essential attitude/quality of a winning person. "

Naomi King | 1/20/2014

" Maxwell maps out practices and guides readers through unlearning failing that locks us into never achieving and into failing that moves us forward toward achievements and goals. Positive and encouraging, Maxwell deftly addresses social myths of failing and invites readers into a new way of living. Recommended for groups and individuals, especially for communities and organizations who are struggling around failure. "

Jim Dubois | 1/19/2014

" Everyone should read this book to stay motivated especially after failure. "

Totos | 1/9/2014

" inspiring for anyone who wants to have a different perspective about failing "

Mel Ballew | 1/2/2014

" Everyone makes mistakes. We are all human and these are lessons in life. How we choose to react makes all the difference. The author delves into this by breaking it down w/grounded simplicity. We all need to "fall forward" to succeed. "

Michael | 12/20/2013

" Thesis: failing can move you in the right direction if you "fail forward." I really liked the closing story in the book from Famous Dave. "

Erica | 11/12/2013

" This book allowed be to learn to except all experiences as growth towards success. "

Cone | 10/26/2013

" A book that changes the definition of failure. "

Terri | 10/14/2013

" This book has completely changed definition of failure and my attitude toward it. We all fail but our reaction to failure determines whether or not we will ultimately be successful. "

" This was a very relevant book for me. It has helped me understand the psychology of why I have not been able to fully recover from a fairly recent major failure in my life and to start turning that around. If you are struggling with any issue in your life I would strongly recommend this book. "

Trevor | 6/23/2013

" Different perspective on succeeding. Great book! "

Murray Henke | 12/15/2012

" I loved it and I learned that if you keep doing what you are doing, you are going to keep getting what you are getting. "

Rebekah Rooker | 10/4/2012

" This book was dropped into my lap at a very pivatal time in my life...I not only needed to know I WAS NOT A FAILURE, BUT THAT FAILING WAS OK AS LONG AS YOU DID NOT STAY IN THE FAILURE....GREAT READ!! :D "

" The best book for people who view themselves as failures to start with on the way to changing their mind set. "

Tokunbo Ige | 10/28/2011

" Extremely good book.....everyone needs to read it because we all will fail in one thing or the other......it really brings home the adage that life is not a bed of roses. "

Eddie | 9/2/2011

" I found great inspiration in reading this book. John Maxwell points out that even the most successful people have experienced failure. The key is to work through failure and learn from those mistakes. "

Cherese Moore | 7/3/2011

" Failure is not an option. Failure always preceeds success. "

Rachel John-Gilbert | 5/2/2011

" Great book to help you reshape failure as not only a common human experience, but how critical it is to let God redeem those failures in order to propel us forward. I love Maxwell's books, though often I do not read all the "example stories," b/c I'm looking more for data and "the point." "

Gina | 4/27/2011

" Puts failure in proper perspective. A necessity on the path to success.
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" This book is very revealing. The author uses alot of personal stories from both well known ppl and average ppl to illistrate that mistakes are good if used as learning oppurtunitis. And there are many questions he asks in the back of ea. chapter for personal insight and enlightenment.
"

Jane | 12/4/2010

" This book changed my thinking about failure and how to deal with this "given" aspect of life. Consequently, the book changed my life and I highly recommend it to anybody who wants to learn how to deal head-on with failure.
"

Jerry | 12/4/2010

" John Maxwell is one of my favorite authors......he doesn't disappoint in this book. A great read for those of us who make mistakes...
"

Brian | 11/13/2010

" One of the first books I ever devoured concerning how to be an effective leader, whether in business, community, or family. A must read for every person who desires to lead any endeavor.
"

Sonya | 9/2/2010

" This is a great book to put any set-back into perspective. I feel we need to better equip our children on how to fail in a positive way. All parents should read this book and young adults should read this book as they venture on to college and the "real world".
"

Lance | 7/21/2010

" This was a very relevant book for me. It has helped me understand the psychology of why I have not been able to fully recover from a fairly recent major failure in my life and to start turning that around. If you are struggling with any issue in your life I would strongly recommend this book.
"

Julie | 7/20/2010

" This is SUCH an excellent book for anyone who really has trouble with making mistakes and seeing themselves or things they do as failures... and that being a negative. It may take me a lifetime to apply what I learned here, but I'm going to try!
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Rebekah | 7/12/2010

" Failure is an EXPECTED part of life... Why are we surprised???
This book took my perfectionistic tendancies and threw them out the window... very freeing and lifegiving read:) Plus John C. Maxwell is a well known author on leadership and a New York Times Best Seller.
"

About the Author

John C. Maxwell, known as America’s expert on leadership, speaks to hundreds of thousands of people each year. He has communicated his leadership principles to Fortune 500 companies, the United States Military Academy at West Point, and sports organizations such as the NCAA, the NBA, and the NFL. A New York Times bestselling author, he has written more than thirty books, including Winning with People and Today Matters. Two of his books, Developing the Leader within You and The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, have sold more than one million copies apiece.

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